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Theater Listings for Jan. 25-31

Approximate running times are in parentheses. Theaters are in Manhattan unless otherwise noted. Full reviews of current productions, additional listings, showtimes and ticket information are at nytimes.com/theater. A searchable, critical guide to theater is at nytimes.com/events.

Previews and Openings

‘All in the Timing’ (in previews; opens on Feb. 12) Fresh from his well-reviewed Broadway production of “A Christmas Story, the Musical,” John Rando directs the 20th-anniversary revival of this collection of six one-act comedies in which David Ives brings his playful perspective and wizardry with language to matters romantic and existential. The cast for the Primary Stages production includes Jenn Harris, Carson Elrod and Matthew Saldivar. 59E59 Theaters, 59 East 59th Street, (212) 279-4200, primarystages.org. (David Rooney)

‘All the Rage’ (opens on Wednesday) Martin Moran won an Obie Award in 2004 for “The Tricky Part,” based on his own memoir about persevering after suffering sexual abuse as a child. The intervening years have apparently provided Mr. Moran and his “Tricky Part” director, Seth Barrish, with enough material for another autobiographical solo show and then some. Among the topics included here: political asylum, a Las Vegas funeral, the origins of man, South Africa and a furious stepmother. Peter Jay Sharp Theater, 416 West 42nd Street, (212) 279-4200, ticketcentral.com. (Eric Grode)

‘Clive’ (in previews; opens on Feb. 7) After directing Jonathan Marc Sherman’s “Things We Want” for the New Group, Ethan Hawke reunites with that playwright and company to stage this premiere inspired by Bertolt Brecht’s “Baal.” Mr. Hawke also plays the title character in this modern update, which traces the slide from success to self-destruction of a songwriter in 1990s New York. Brooks Ashmanskas, Vincent D’Onofrio and Zoe Kazan also star in the production, which features live performances of classic American songs. Acorn Theater at Theater Row, 410 West 42nd Street, Clinton, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Rooney)

‘Fiorello!’ (opens on Wednesday) Has it really been 19 years since City Center’s Encores! series began poking around in the less familiar corners of the Broadway musical canon, unearthing underrated gems like “One Touch of Venus,” “Juno” and “Chicago”? The series begins its 20th season by revisiting its first production, the Pulitzer Prize-winning 1959 ode to Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia of New York. (Not so coincidentally, he is credited with saving City Center from the wrecking ball.) Danny Rutigliano stars in the title role, and Shuler Hensley and Emily Skinner are among his co-stars. City Center, 131 West 55th Street, (212) 581-1212, nycitycenter.org. (Grode)

‘Isaac’s Eye’ (previews start on Wednesday; opens on Feb. 9) It’s “Amadeus” with optics! Once again an enterprising playwright (Lucas Hnath, in this case) has attempted to look at centuries-old culture by having a young genius (and partly named title character) do battle with an older contemporary, rising to far greater notoriety when all is said and done. It worked for Mozart, and now it’s Isaac Newton’s turn, with the scientist Robert Hooke filling in as the embittered eminence destined to relative obscurity. Ensemble Studio Theater, 549 West 52nd Street, Clinton, (866) 811-4111, ensemblestudiotheatre.org. (Grode)

‘Katie Roche’ (previews start on Saturday; opens on Feb. 25) To the extent that New York theatergoers know anything about the 20th-century Irish playwright Teresa Deevy, it is because of the Mint Theater. The enterprising theater, which is also publishing two volumes of her writings, wraps up its three-play Deevy retrospective with this 1936 drama about a wildly ambitious servant girl. The Abbey Theater brought it to America in 1937, but this is the first American production. The Mint’s artistic director, Jonathan Bank, directs once again. 311 West 43rd Street, Clinton, (866) 811-4111, minttheater.org. (Grode)

‘Luck of the Irish’ (previews start on Monday; opens on Feb. 11) Kirsten Greenidge made a splash in 2011 with her Obie Award-winning play “Milk Like Sugar,” about teenage pregnancy. Her new play may sound familiar to “Clybourne Park” fans; it also looks at race relations, filtered through the eyes of black and white inhabitants of the same house over multiple generations. Ms. Greenidge’s play is about the tensions that rise when an Irish family, which is paid to “ghost buy” a house in an all-white Boston neighborhood for a black family in the 1950s, comes back to claim the house. Her “Milk” director, Rebecca Taichman, returns for this one. Claire Tow Theater, Lincoln Center, 150 West 65th Street, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com, lct3.org. (Grode)

‘Moose Murders’ (previews start on Tuesday; opens on Wednesday) Last year saw high-profile New York productions of “Carrie” and “Merrily We Roll Along,” two bombs of the 1980s. Now it’s time for this one-performance debacle, which sent critics running for their thesauruses to describe scenes like the one in which a mummified paraplegic rises from his wheelchair to kick a guy in the groin. Oh, and the guy is wearing a moose costume. The one who is kicked, not the paraplegic. Anyway, it’s back, courtesy of the Beautiful Soup Theater Collective. One worrisome note: The playwright, Arthur Bicknell, “has significantly rewritten and revised ‘Moose Murders’ for this new production.” What’s the fun in that? Connelly Theater, 220 East Fourth Street, East Village, (888) 718-4253, beautifulsoup.showclix.com. (Grode)

‘Really Really’ (previews start on Thursday; opens on Feb. 19) The premise of the play sounds less than groundbreaking: College pals turn on one another after a boozy party. But this new play by Paul Downs Colaizzo has plenty going for it, including a good track record (it was a smash for the Signature Theater in Washington last year), TV darlings in the cast (Zosia Mamet of “Girls,” Matt Lauria of “Friday Night Lights”) and, most intriguing of all, the infinitely resourceful director David Cromer (“Tribes,” “Our Town”). Lucille Lortel Theater, 121 Christopher Street, West Village, (212) 352-3101, mcctheater.org. (Grode)

‘Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella’ (previews start on Friday; opens on March 3) The 1957 television musical of “Cinderella” was a runaway smash and almost immediately began spawning stage incarnations, starring Eartha Kitt, Everett Quinton and Jean Stapleton (though they weren’t cast in the title role). But this staging is the property’s first appearance on Broadway, complete with a new book by Douglas Carter Beane (“Sister Act,” “The Little Dog Laughed”) and four fairly obscure songs added from the Rodgers and Hammerstein catalog. Laura Osnes stars as Cinderella, and she is surrounded by a formidable trio of scene stealers: Harriet Harris, Victoria Clark and Ann Harada. Broadway Theater, 1681 Broadway, at 53rd Street, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Grode)

‘Totally Tubular Time Machine’ (in previews; opens on Feb. 9) Every time a new jukebox assembly appears, musical theater purists complain that the form is being dumbed down into elaborate karaoke. The creators of this show thumb their noses at such charges. This immersive experience allows audiences to time-travel through the 1980s and ’90s and back to the present, joining the party of celebrity excess and pop mash-up. (Saturdays only.) Culture Club, 20 West 39th Street, (212) 921-1999, totallytubularnyc.com. (Rooney)

‘The Vandal’ (in previews; opens on Thursday) Since wrapping up his sitcom role on “The New Adventures of Old Christine,” Hamish Linklater has impressed on New York stages in “Seminar” and “School for Lies.” He follows other actors who have recently ventured into playwriting, like Jesse Eisenberg, Zach Braff and Zoe Kazan, with this enigmatic encounter between a woman and a boy who swap stories one cold night at a Kingston, N.Y., bus stop. Jim Simpson directs a cast that includes Zach Grenier, Deirdre O’Connell and Noah Robbins. Flea Theater, 41 White Street, TriBeCa, (212) 226-2407, theflea.org. (Rooney)

‘Women of Will’ (previews start on Tuesday; opens on Feb. 3) Quick: How many of William Shakespeare’s title characters are women? The answer is three, though Juliet, Cressida and Cleopatra each have to share the marquee with a guy. By comparison, four different Henrys alone warrant title billing. Tina Packer, the founding artistic director of Shakespeare & Company in Massachusetts, looks to rectify this imbalance with her 15-years-in-the-making exploration of the Shakespearean canon through the eyes of his female characters. Nigel Gore stars with Ms. Packer, but expect the focus to be on Beatrice, Portia, Viola, Lady Macbeth and many other women. Gym at Judson Memorial Church, 55 Washington Square South, Greenwich Village, (866) 811-4111, judson.org/The-Gym. (Grode)

Broadway

‘Annie’ James Lapine’s revival of the singing comic strip from 1977 is merely serviceable. But its smiley-faced mixture of hope and corn scratches an itch in a city recovering from a recession and a hurricane. Theatergoers may feel the urge both to mist up and throw up, but Lilla Crawford is a nigh irresistible Orphan Annie. With Katie Finneran and Anthony Warlow (2:25). Palace Theater, 1564 Broadway, at 47th Street, (877) 250-2929, ticketmaster.com. (Ben Brantley)

‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ A four-alarm urgency infuses Scarlett Johansson’s performance in Rob Ashford’s oxygen-starved revival of Tennessee Williams’s 1955 drama of sex and lies. If Ms. Johansson is oddly un-feline as Maggie the Cat, she sure has presence. The rest of the cast, including Benjamin Walker and Ciaran Hinds, gets lost in the heavy atmospherics (2:40). Richard Rodgers Theater, 226 West 46th Street, (800) 745-3000, ticketmaster.com. (Brantley)

‘The Heiress’ Masterpiece Theater on Broadway. Moisés Kaufman’s revival of Ruth and Augustus Goetz’s sturdy war horse, starring a one-note Jessica Chastain, is lovely to look at, easy to follow and — aside from a vivid supporting performance from Judith Ivey — about as full of real life as an Olde New York Christmas window in a department store (2:45). Walter Kerr Theater, 219 West 48th Street, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Brantley)

★ ‘The Mystery of Edwin Drood’ A boisterous, well-cast revival of Rupert Holmes’s Tony-winning 1986 musical, which gives the audience the chance to choose the identity of the killer of the titular hero. Chita Rivera lends an air of authentic glamour, Jim Norton is a cutup as the music-hall proprietor, and the young cast sings the lovely score with great skill (2:35). Studio 54, 254 West 54th Street, (212) 719-1300, roundabouttheatre.org. (Charles Isherwood)

‘Nice Work if You Can Get It’ Every now and then a bubble of pure, tickling charm rises from the artificial froth of this pastiche 1920s musical, directed by Kathleen Marshall and featuring songs by George and Ira Gershwin. But mostly the production, starring Matthew Broderick and Kelli O’Hara, registers as a shiny, dutiful trickle of gags and production numbers (2:30). Imperial Theater, 249 West 45th Street, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Brantley)

★ ‘Once’ This gentle musical, set in Dublin, about a love affair that never quite happens — based on the 2006 movie — inventively uses songs (by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova) and dance to convey a beautiful shimmer of might-have-been regret. Staged by John Tiffany and Steven Hoggett (“Black Watch”), the production stars the immensely appealing Steve Kazee and Cristin Milioti (2:15). Bernard B. Jacobs Theater, 242 West 45th Street, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Brantley)

‘Bare’ Stafford Arima directs this tragic tale of star-cross’d gay lovers in a Roman Catholic boarding school. While the boys try to keep their romance secret, the truth comes spilling out during a school production of “Romeo and Juliet.” Retooled significantly since its first incarnation in 2000, this emo musical has been updated to reflect attitudes toward homophobia and bullying in the “It Gets Better” era. But despite touching moments and a committed cast, the material is too painfully earnest and riddled with clichés to connect with audiences not still mired in adolescence (2:30). New World Stages, 340 West 50th Street, Clinton, (212) 239-6200, baremusicalnyc.com. (Rooney)

★ ‘Bethany’ A single mother (the terrific America Ferrera) fights to win back custody of her child — lost to foster care when she became homeless — in Laura Marks’s smart, compassionate play, featuring a fine supporting cast and sensitive direction by Gaye Taylor Upchurch (1:30). City Center Stage II, 131 West 55th Street, (212) 581-1212, nycitycenter.org. (Isherwood)

‘Le Cid’ When Rodrigue’s father is insulted, Rodrigue must seek vengeance. Inconveniently, his target happens to be his future father-in-law. It is the original Corneillian dilemma, named for this 1636 play by Pierre Corneille, of a choice between honor and love. The infatuations with face-saving veer from the tragic to the comic, usually by design. An uneven cast struggles with some of the meatier roles, but the rarely produced masterwork is still worth seeing (1:55). Theater of the Church of Notre Dame, 405 West 114th Street, at Morningside Drive, Morningside Heights, (212) 868-4444, stormtheatre.com. (Catherine Rampell)

‘Cougar the Musical’ Three older women find themselves attracted to younger men, two against their better judgment. The concept seems made for bus tours, but imagination, appealing numbers with original melodies and theme-transcending jokes lift this show well above the level of “Menopause: The Musical” and its ilk (1:30). St. Luke’s Theater, 308 West 46th Street, Clinton, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Anita Gates)

★ ‘Forbidden Broadway: Alive and Kicking’ Gerard Alessandrini’s essential satirical cheat sheet to Broadway musicals returns after a three-year absence, packing polished brass knuckles. A precisionist cast of four provides vocal cartoons as evocative as Al Hirschfeld’s caricatures. This show not only tickles but also pierces the Achilles’ heels of the productions under scrutiny (1:40). At the 47th Street Theater, 304 West 47th Street, Clinton, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Brantley)

‘Forever Dusty’ If Kristen Holly Smith turned up to your costume party in Dusty Springfield drag and started singing, there would be no mistaking the woman she was channeling. But doing a passable impersonation is a far cry from capturing the essence of one of the most distinctive female vocalists of all time, as this amateurish inflated cabaret act demonstrates. Written in by-the-numbers basics by Ms. Smith and Jonathan Vankin and directed with minimal finesse by Randal Myler, this misconceived bio-musical is a soulless tribute to the platinum-haired, panda-eyed queen of white soul. She deserves better (1:40). New World Stages, 340 West 50th Street, Clinton, (212) 239-6200, foreverdusty.net. (Rooney)

★ ‘Fried Chicken and Latkes’ Rain Pryor, the daughter of the comedian Richard Pryor (who died in 2005), stars in this effervescent solo show, which recounts her upbringing in a biracial household (her mother is Jewish) in Beverly Hills, Calif. Ms. Pryor, who sings and portrays a range of characters (including, poignantly, her father in a spot-on impression) is an ebullient performer with a robust singing voice. She lives in Baltimore now, but her outsize personality is built for Broadway (1:30). Actor’s Temple Theater, 339 West 47th Street, Clinton, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Andy Webster)

‘In Acting Shakespeare’ What began as an homage to Ian McKellen’s one-man show “Acting Shakespeare” has become a boisterous, agreeable and somewhat glib tale of acting Shakespeare. The eager-to-please James DeVita charts his progress from histrionics to honesty, interwoven with bits of Shakespeare biography and plenty of dog-eared soliloquies (1:45). Pearl Theater, 555 West 42nd Street, Clinton, (212) 563-9261, pearltheatre.org. (Grode)

‘Life and Times: Episodes 1-4’ An epic journey through the life of a young woman growing up in Rhode Island, as recollected at Wagnerian length in the disjointed, disorganized language of everyday speech. (The script is a literal transcription of several phone conversations.) Pavol Liska and Kelly Copper, directors of the Nature Theater of Oklahoma, have created a magnum opus that seeks to transform trivial material into magical theater. They more or less succeed, though only those with affection for endurance-test theater will leave cheering rather than exhausted (Episode 1: 3:15; Episode 2: 2:00; Episode 3 and 4: 2:30). Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street, at Astor Place, East Village, (212) 967-7555, publictheater.org. (Isherwood)

Photo

Armando Riesco and Zabryna Guevara in "Water by the Spoonful."Credit
Karli Cadel for The New York Times

‘My Name Is Asher Lev’ Aaron Posner’s adaptation of Chaim Potok’s novel feels like a well-made play from the era in which the story takes place — the 1950s. Set in a Hasidic community in Brooklyn, this tale of an artistic prodigy has been directed with an attention to emotional nuance by Gordon Edelstein and features strong performances from its three-person cast: Ari Brand, Mark Nelson and Jenny Bacon (1:30). Westside Theater/Upstairs, 407 West 43rd Street, Clinton, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Rachel Saltz)

‘Not by Bread Alone’ This singular touring production from the Nalagaat Theater of Israel is performed entirely by deaf and blind actors. Directed by Adina Tal, the show is strongest when its cast members describe the sensory content of their lives. The flashier diversions (slapstick, dance, comic vignettes) cater bluntly to a hearing and seeing audience (1:30). New York University Skirball Center, 566 La Guardia Place, at Washington Square South, Greenwich Village, (212) 352-3101, nyuskirball.org. (Brantley)

★ ‘The Suit’ Devastation by enchantment, courtesy of the great director Peter Brook and the Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord. Even as it draws you in like the gregarious host of a spirited party, this simply told tale of adultery in apartheid South Africa is quietly preparing to break your heart. Four actors and three musicians make beautiful magic together (1:15). Harvey Theater, Brooklyn Academy of Music, 651 Fulton Street, Fort Greene, (718) 636-4100, bam.org. (Brantley)

★ ‘Water by the Spoonful’ Quiara Alegría Hudes’s moving collage of lives in crisis, the 2012 winner of the Pulitzer Prize for drama, is the second part of a trilogy centering on the Ortiz family. Elliot (the fine Armando Riesco), a former Marine injured in Iraq, struggles with the loss of the aunt who raised him and a tempestuous reconnection with the ex-crack-addict mother who abandoned him (2:10). Second Stage Theater, 305 West 43rd Street, Clinton, (212) 246-4422, 2st.com. (Isherwood)

Off Off Broadway

★ ‘Patti Issues’ In his funny, tender coming-of-age monologue, Ben Rimalower traces the obsessive Patti LuPone fandom that provided him with an empowering role model. That inspiration proved perhaps most useful to Mr. Rimalower in processing the fallout after his father kicked down the closet door and bailed on the family. While on one hand, this is the story of many young gay men’s propensity for diva worship, the tartly observed show goes several steps further by exploring the wide-eyed experiences that result when the acolyte gets to interact with his idol (1:00). Duplex Cabaret Theater, 61 Christopher Street, at Seventh Avenue, Greenwich Village, pattiissues.brownpapertickets.com. (Rooney)

‘The Berenstain Bears Live! In Family Matters, the Musical’ This adaptation of three of Stan and Jan Berenstain’s children’s books is pleasant enough, but the cubs are showing their age. Saturday and Sunday only (:55). Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater, 5 West 63rd Street, (866) 811-4111, berenstainbearslive.com.

‘En el Tiempo de las Mariposas’ Caridad Svich’s Spanish-language adaptation of Julia Álvarez’s novel (“In the Time of the Butterflies”) about the Mirabal sisters, who opposed the Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo and died as a result (2:00). Friday and Tuesday only at Repertorio Español at Gramercy Arts Theater, 138 East 27th Street, (212) 225-9999, repertorio.org/mariposas.

‘Silence! The Musical’ An “unauthorized parody” of the grisly movie with the Hannibal Lecter character crooning noxious songs and a hilarious sendup of Jodie Foster’s intense Clarice Starling. Not as funny as it needs to be (1:30). Elektra Theater, 674 Eighth Avenue, at 42nd Street, (212) 352-3101, silencethemusical.com.

‘Evita’ (closes on Saturday) This just in: Eva Perón is still dead. That, anyway, is on the evidence of Michael Grandage’s unsmiling revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s 1978 bio-musical, which feels about as warm-blooded as a gilded mummy. Elena Roger, Michael Cerveris and Ricky Martin are the stars of this earnest combination of requiem mass and history pageant (2:30). Marquis Theater, 1535 Broadway, at 45th Street, (800) 745-3000, ticketmaster.com. (Brantley)

‘The Fig Leaves Are Falling’ (closes on Saturday) This musical about infidelity in suburbia, with a book and lyrics by Allan Sherman (he of “Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh”), flopped on Broadway in 1969 but has been revived in a crisp production by UnsungMusicalsCo. Despite some exceptional singing and smooth choreography, this chronicle of a “Mad Men”-era executive’s temptation by his young secretary disappoints because of the weak source material (1:15). Connelly Theater, 220 East Fourth Street, East Village, (212) 868-4444, unsungmusicals.org. (Daniel M. Gold)

‘Midsummer [a play with songs]’ (closes on Saturday) Though it sometimes pretends not to be, David Greig’s lively two-character show is a full-fledged rom-com, in which a mismatched couple (Matthew Pidgeon and Cora Bissett) tumble from bed into adventure and finally into love on the streets of rainy Edinburgh. It’s a proper date play, executed with theatrical ingenuity (1:30). Clurman Theater at Theater Row, 410 West 42nd Street, Clinton, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. (Brantley)

‘Seagull (Thinking of You)’ (closes on Saturday) Tina Satter’s present-tense riff on an immortal Chekhov drama blurs all possible boundaries (between actors and their roles, reality and fiction, parody and sincerity) into a chic-looking puzzle of a production that recalls vintage Calvin Klein fragrance commercials. This show, part of Performance Space 122’s Coil Festival, might be appropriately subtitled: “Chekhov, the Perfume. Smell the Melancholy.” New Ohio Theater, 143 Christopher Street, West Village, (212) 352-3101, ps122.org. (Brantley)

Correction: January 25, 2013

An earlier version of this listing referred incorrectly to the title of the play beginning preview performances Jan. 28 in the Claire Tow Theater at Lincoln Center. The title is “Luck of the Irish,” not “The Luck of the Irish.”

Correction: January 29, 2013

Theater entries in the Listings pages on Friday and on Jan. 18 about “The Other Place,” at the Samuel J. Friedman Theater in Manhattan, misstated the play’s running time. It is 1 hour 10 minutes, not 2 hours 10 minutes.